ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 3124 http://www.s-gabriel.org/3124 ************************************ 21 Jul 2006 From: Guaire mac Guaire Greetings from the Academy of S. Gabriel! You wanted to know whether <Padriac O Ruairc> was an authentic Irish masculine name sometime within the period 1200 - 1500, and especially in the 14th century. If not, you wanted to know what changes would be needed to make it so. Here is what we have found. We didn't find any examples to support the spelling of <Patriac> with <ia> instead of <ai> as you proposed. Therefore we cannot recommend your spelling. By the 13th century, the name <Pa/traic> had begun to be used in Ireland. The slash indicates an acute accent over the preceding letter. The name continued in use through the period in which you are interested. The standardized spelling associated with this period is <Pa/draig>. [1] This is pronounced roughly \PAH-dr@g\ with the \@\ representing the sound of <a> in <sofa> and <about>. [2] The proposed byname <O Ruairc> means descendant of <Ruarc>. [3] Irish grammar requires that <Ruarc> be modified to a genitive (possessive) form in a byname. The proper genitive form is <Ruairc> with the extra 'i' serving the same purpose as <'s> in English. Actual documentary practice was somewhat variable, but the standard forms of the byname in your period are <Ua Ruairc> and <O/ Ruairc>; the former is the more conservative and is a better choice for the early part of your period. [4] In both forms <Ruairc> was pronounced roughly \ROO-@rk\; <Ua> was roughly \OO@\, and <O/> was roughly \oa\, where \oa\ represents the sound of <oa> in <boat>). You also expressed interest in having your persona originate in central Ireland. Our research shows that <O/ Ruairc> was a prominent name in the kingdom of Bre/ifne, consisting of modern day counties Leitrim and Cavan in north central Ireland. [5] Therefore, we believe either of the names <Pa/draig O/ Ruairc> or <Pa/draig Ua Ruairc> would be authentic choices for a 14th century man from central Ireland. I hope this letter has been useful. Please write to us again if any part of it has been unclear or if you have other questions. I was assisted in researching and writing this letter by Aryanhwy merch Catmael, Eleyne de Comnocke, Ines Alfon, Juliana de Luna, Mari neyn Brian, Talan Gwynek, and Ursula Georges. For the Academy, Guaire mac Guaire 21 July 2006 ----------- References: [1] Mari Elspeth nic Bryan, "Index of Names in Irish Annals" (WWW: Academy of S. Gabriel, 2001-2006); s.n. <Pa/draig>. http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/ [2] Academy of S. Gabriel Report #3110. http://www.s-gabriel.org/3110 [3] O/ Corra/in, Donnchadh and Fidelma Maguire, _Irish Names_ (Dublin: The Lilliput Press, 1990), page 158; s.n. <Ruarcc>. [4] Mari Elspeth nic Bryan, "Index of Names in Irish Annals: hUa Ruaircc / Ua Ruairc, O/ Ruairc" (WWW: Academy of S. Gabriel, 2001- 2006, revised 03 July 2006) http://www.s- gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/FamilyNames/O_Ruairc.shtml [5] Thurneysen, Rudolf, ed. _Sce/la Mucce Meic Datho/_, Mediaeval and Modern Irish Series, Volume VI. (Oxford, Great Britain: University Press, 1932). The Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 1975 reprint. p 64.